H264 support being worked on?

[ckuehne]

Hi,

Since it seems like all the higher end cameras will only broadcast in h264 now (at 720p and 960p resolutions) I was wondering if you guys are currently working on h264 support.  I would like the higher quality images, but the only way those newer cameras work with iCam (at least the ones that I've found) require streaming a lower quality image.

I'm also completely open to an 720p - preferably 960p resolution camera recommendations that work with iCam Pro - I'm sure I can't be alone in preferring this.

Thank you for your time.

[Stefan]

Yes, we are looking into different ways to include h.264 support in iCam without running up against the licensing issues associated with decoding / encoding h.264 in software.

[ckuehne]

Really glad to hear that, and that makes sense.

Thank you.

[Skyking]

Yes, we are looking into different ways to include h.264 support in iCam without running up against the licensing issues associated with decoding / encoding h.264 in software.

Stefan,

A couple of days ago I wrote the support address about some Hikvision DS-2CD2032-I cameras I recently bought.  I got a pretty nonsensical reply and was scratching my head and remembered some previous discussion about lack of h.264 support.  Reference the OP on this thread and your reply, the fact that pretty much the industry standard is going to IP and h.264 for bandwidth management and JPEG/MJPEG is kind of dying off:

• Can you provide us anything specific about what you are doing to get h.264 adaptation into your product line?
• When specifically (Later this month?  Later this year?  It is a goal but you are not actually making any progress?) should we anticipate some solid information on this?

Your products have previously been leading edge and I have used them for years with great admiration for your efforts.  I am hoping you are not resting on your laurels, but are continuing to develop and advance your product line.

Much Thanks,

Phil

[Stefan]

We are currently looking into the technical and legal aspects of utilizing Cisco's OpenH264: http://www.openh264.org/

As for a time frame, h.264 support is one of our higher priorities, but it keeps getting bumped by other development issues. (Apple's recent requirement for all iOS 9 app submissions to require support for IPv6 is one such example.)

In spite of that, I am hoping that we should have an answer as to whether or not OpenH264 will be a viable solution sometime by the end of the year.

Yes, we are looking into different ways to include h.264 support in iCam without running up against the licensing issues associated with decoding / encoding h.264 in software.

Stefan,

A couple of days ago I wrote the support address about some Hikvision DS-2CD2032-I cameras I recently bought.  I got a pretty nonsensical reply and was scratching my head and remembered some previous discussion about lack of h.264 support.  Reference the OP on this thread and your reply, the fact that pretty much the industry standard is going to IP and h.264 for bandwidth management and JPEG/MJPEG is kind of dying off:

• Can you provide us anything specific about what you are doing to get h.264 adaptation into your product line?
• When specifically (Later this month?  Later this year?  It is a goal but you are not actually making any progress?) should we anticipate some solid information on this?

Your products have previously been leading edge and I have used them for years with great admiration for your efforts.  I am hoping you are not resting on your laurels, but are continuing to develop and advance your product line.

Much Thanks,

Phil

[echiang]

Greetings,

Any update on the h.264 support in iCam Pro? I would have no problem paying for h.264 as an in-app purchase or in a new iCam app.

Ed

[geezfools]

Greetings,

Any update on the h.264 support in iCam Pro? I would have no problem paying for h.264 as an in-app purchase or in a new iCam app.

Ed

I honestly don't see this happening anytime soon. I've pushed iCam for years and am currently using it with six cameras, but I have been looking elsewhere and there seem to be some really great options out there now. You either keep up with the technology or get left behind. I kinda feel like this one is inevitable.

[nigels0]

Any recommendations on a H.264 supporting app?

[geezfools]

Any recommendations on a H.264 supporting app?

I'd suggest checking out the homdefense subreddit, lots of great info there...

[bobafetts3]

I was looking into adding some more cameras, but it seems like most of the ones I've been looking at all are h.264.
Any idea if, at all, iCam will support h.264?
The system has been working well for me the for the past 5 years or so, but I'd like to buy some new cameras.

[bobafetts3]

Guess this won't ever get an answer. Time to look someplace else I guess.

[Jay]

There are a few reasons H.264 support hasn't been added to iCam Pro. 

There is the patent/licensing issue Stefan mentioned earlier. 

There is also the fact that most cameras that support H.264 also support MJPEG.

H.264 support would actually require more computing resources than MJPEG support because of the fact that the H.264 video would have to be converted to image data in order to perform motion detection

Finally, there is a workaround to get H.264 video (not audio) working on iCam Pro.  A virtual webcam program, such as Manycam (www.manycam.com), can be used to capture the H.264 video from a window on the computer and then used as a video source in iCamSource Pro.

We do plan on adding H.264 support, but the reasons I gave above are the reasons that H.264 support hasn't been a top development priority up to this point.

[wfiveash]

I hope y'all add H.264 support soon because I'm having trouble finding a decent WiFi video camera that supports mjpeg.  If you have any suggestions for such a video camera that supports pan/tilt (not foscam which I will never buy again) please let me know.